Lakers Secure Postseason With Win Over RedHawks

CROWN POINT, Ind. – Roosevelt overcame playing down a player for more than 35 minutes to clinch its spot in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament with a 2-0 win Saturday against Indiana Northwest in Crown Point, Ind.

The Lakers (6-9, 4-7 CCAC) took the lead in the 26^th minute on a strike from senior Nyah Bejarano as part of a dominant first half. Roosevelt outshot Indiana Northwest 9-2 in the opening half, putting four of those attempts on goal. The Lakers finished with a 15-10 edge in shots with Roxana Herrera stopping all six shots she faced and Roosevelt being credited with two defensive saves in the final minutes.

Roosevelt went down a player in the 55^th minute then lost a second player in the 67^th minute due to a red card. Yet playing down two players against the RedHawks didn't matter as Gris Gurrola doubled the lead in the 86^th minute to secure the postseason for Roosevelt. Gurrola led the Lakers with five shots, including three on goal, during the match as Roosevelt forced eight saves from the Indiana Northwest goalie.

The RedHawks tried to push for a goal in the final few moments as they used their advantage to sustain pressure on the Lakers. However, a shot was blocked by the Roosevelt defense for a corner kick in the 88^th minute, then a header off the set piece was cleared away by the Lakers back line. A subsequent header was caught cleanly by Herrera to preserve the clean sheet.

Roosevelt enters the CCAC Tournament as the No. 8 seed and will face top-seeded St. Ambrose on Friday at 6 p.m. in Davenport, Iowa.